Senate Center for Extension and Pastoral Theological Research (SCEPTRE)
Extension Theological Education programme of the Senate of Serampore College is committed to promoting theological education by extension to enable the local congregations to strengthen leadership, teaching ministry, and empower men and women of God in their churches and Christian vocation. In general, the Extension programme is not designed to be a professional degree, thereby not being taken as a qualification for ordination into the church’s ministry. However, we acknowledge with gratitude that many pastors and missionaries and other full-time Christian workers are doing extension courses to improve their theological knowledge and perspective. Again, the Senate’s Extension programmes are not meant for residential studies.
The Senate of Serampore College, in its meeting in 1989, resolved to start the course of Diploma in Christian Studies (Dip.CS) as an extension programme. It approved the rules and regulations which was prepared before and forwarded to the Council of Serampore College for implementing the programme with effect from the 1989 academic session. This course was designed to be completed with a minimum of two years and a maximum of four years. It is also resolved that as Diploma in Christian Studies is introduced, the B.Th external programme shall be abolished from the 1990 academic year. Permission was also given to affiliated Colleges to offer Dip.CS provided they follow Regulations and Study material prepared by the Senate.
The following year, the Senate approved the proposal to institute a new programme leading to a Bachelor of Christian Studies (BCS). The recommendation was sent to the Council in February 1989 for approval. Senate resolved that BCS studies will be commenced from the academic year of 1990. And in 2012, Master of Christian Studies was also introduced. To run these courses, two flats were bought at Kolkata; and Senate Centre for Extension and Pastoral Theological Research (SCEPTRE) was inaugurated in 2001. SCEPTRE is the Programme Centre of the Senate of Serampore College for promoting theological education through extension. The main objective of the SCEPTRE is to make theological education available to people who do not get the opportunity to go for residential theological education due to various reasons.